Protective sheath for fluid transfer

ABSTRACT

In the transfer of fluid from a supply station to one or more receiving stations separated from the supply station by discharging the fluid in the form of a high-velocity, welldefined stream toward each receiving station from the supply station through the open space therebetween, an extensiblecollapsible sleeve of thin, rugged, lightweight film is fed out over the stream during discharge thereof as a protective sheath therefor. The sleeve is of greater diameter than the stream and is supported by the moving boundary layer of air adjacent the periphery of the stream. Prior to conclusion of the fluid transfer operation, the sleeve is returned to a collapsed condition for storage until the next transfer operation is begun.

limited States atertt Erector PROTECTIVE SHEATH FOR FLUID TRANSFER Edward D. Proctor, Riverdale, Md.

Bowles Fluidics Corporation, Silver Springs, Md.

Filed: Jan. 24, 1968 App1.No.: 700,278

Inventor:

Assignee:

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS Grunsky ..141/39O X Metzger ..137/81.5 X

[ 1 Aug. 29, 1972 [57] ABSTRACT In the transfer of fluid from a supply station to one or more receiving stations separated from the supply station by discharging the fluid in the form of a highvelocity, well-defined stream toward each receiving station from the supply station through the open space therebetween, an extensible-collapsible sleeve of thin, rugged, lightweight film is fed out over the stream during discharge thereof as a protective sheath therefor. The sleeve is of greater diameter than the stream and is supported by the moving boundary layer of air adjacent the periphery of the stream. Prior to conclusion of the fluid transfer operation, the sleeve is returned to a collapsed condition for storage until the next transfer operation is begun.

9 Claims, 3 Drawing Figures PATENTEDAUBZQ I912 3.687.173

33 CONTROL $3 6.3 STAT\ 0M I NV E NTOR EDWARD D. PROCTOR BY M 16 0+ ATTORXEY5 BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION In the co-pending US. application for Letters Patent of Romald E. Bowles, entitled Fluid Transfer Methods and Systems, Ser. No. 693,581, filed Dec. 26, 1967, now Pat. No. 3,586,065, there is disclosed a method for transferring fluid from a supply station to one or more receiving stations spatially separated from the supply station and in motion relative thereto, by directing a coherent, high-velocity, well-defined jet or stream of the fluid from a discharge nozzle or nozzles, whose orientation may be varied commensurate with the relative movement of the respective receiving station, toward and into a fluid catcher at the receiving station from which the received fluid may be distributed to appropriate storage tanks. The fluid jet is unconfined throughout its path from the supply station to the receiving station, traveling directly through the open space between the stations, the maintenance of integrity of the jet over that path depending on such factors as discharge nozzle design, supply pressure, and viscosity of the fluid.

Some difficulty may be encountered in such a fluid transfer method where there exists a substantial wind component in any direction normal to the fluid stream, since in that instance, the stream may undergo tearing. Wind velocities below that conducive to stream breakup may be taken into account during direction of the stream into the receiving stations catcher, as a simple windage compensation, particularly where a steady, though strong, wind prevails. The problem is particularly acute, however, in situations involving transfer of fluid between sea-going vessels, such as refueling-at-sea operations, because winds at or near the surface of the water are frequently strong and gusty, and the supply and receiving stations are undergoing continual relative motion.

An open stream is also vulnerable to contamination by foreign particles in the air. In seagoing operations, for example, a jet stream of fuel may pick up tiny droplets of water arising from ocean spray.

It is therefore a principal object of the present invention to provide methods and apparatus for protection of an open jet stream from the aforementioned and other hazards during a fluid transfer operation.

It is a more specific object of my invention to protect a jet stream of liquid fuel from severe wind, weather and/or contamination during refueling at sea.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The above and other objects of the invention are accomplished by enclosing the jet stream in an oversize (relative to the diameter of the stream) thin sheath or sleeve of lightweight, preferably plastic material as the stream spans the gap between supply station and receiving station.

Prior to discharge of the liquid under pressure from the supply station in the form of a stream from the discharge nozzle, the thin membrane sleeve or shroud is stored in compact, accordion-like fashion concentric with the nozzle and rearward of its orifice. After or during establishment of the stream, the sleeve is fed out over the stream, being carried and supported by the layer of air about the periphery of the stream which moves with and at approximately the velocity of the stream boundary, and providing a protective tunnel therefor.

It is therefore still another object of the present invention to provide a protective sheath for enclosing the fluid stream during a fluid transfer operation.

A further object of the invention is to provide a thin protective membrane which may be fed out about a liquid stream by which the liquid is transferred from a supply station to a receiving station and which is supported by the stream or the boundary layer of air adjacent thereto.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The above and still further objects, features and attendant advantages of the present invention will become apparent from a consideration of the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment thereof especially when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, in which:

FIG. 1 is a fragmentary side view of the discharge nozzle and the membrane sleeve in its stored configuration relative thereto;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary sectional side view of the protective sleeve of FIG. 1 as it is fed out on and carried by the stream; and

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary front view of a portion of the apparatus for selectively feeding out and recovering the protective sheath.

DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring now to FIG. 1, a steerable discharge nozzle 10 is used to produce the coherent jet or stream of liquid 12 to be transferred from supply terminal to receiving terminal in a fluid transfer system of the type disclosed in the aforementioned Bowles application. Since the details of such a system are not essential to an understanding of the present invention, they are not shown in the drawing and will be omitted from the ensuing description. The interested reader is directed to the Bowles application for a complete description of overall structure and operation of a jet stream fluid transfer system.

A thin membrane-like sleeve or tube 15 is shown in the collapsed form in which it is compactly stored about and concentric with discharge nozzle 10. One end 16 of sleeve 15 is fastened by any suitable means, such as flange 17, to a support structure 19 to prevent unrestricted freedom of the sleeve and the probability of loss that would accompany such freedom. The other end 20 of sheath 15 is free to be unraveled longitudinally of the stream and is normally positioned behind the orifice through which stream 12 emanates from the nozzle 10, prior to establishing the stream.

Sleeve 15 is preferably composed of a thin, yet rugged, flexible or elastic material of extremely lightweight characteristics. One such material suitable for the purposes of the present invention is polyurethane, although it is to be emphasized that many other materials having the desired properties are available and may be used for the sleeve. A polyurethane film having a wall thickness of 0.001 inch or less and fabricated in tubular form has a weight of the order of only a few ounces per hundred feet of length, the exact weight depending, of course, on precise value of wall thickness and tube diameter. In the preferred form, the diameter of sleeve 15 is at least slightly larger than the expected stream diameter, to the extent that the stream maintains its integrity throughout its path or the greatest portion thereof, such that the sleeve does not actually restrict or establish a tight boundary condition for the stream, but merely encompasses or encloses it. Typical jet or stream diameters range from 1% to 3 inches and such a stream will retain its well-defined solid core character over a distance of 150 or more feet when discharged at a supply pressure of 150 psig or greater. Obviously, the sleeve should have a free length which will permit it to act as a protective sheath for the stream at the maximum expected separation distance (including trajectory considerations) between supply station and receiving station. Preferably the sleeve is extended to encompass the jet stream from the discharge nozzle to a point short of the fluid catcher structure at the receiving station, but it is also within the contemplation of my invention that the jet be enclosed over only a short portion of its path or over the entire path. The preferred extent of stream coverage by the sheath just short of the catcher assures maximum protection without the likelihood of stream deformation according to guiding action by the sheath.

A suitable mechanism for feeding and recovering the sleeve is shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. A wheel 24 attached to rotatable shaft 25 of reversible motor 28 is disposed in pressure-exerting relationship of frictional engagement with a portion of sleeve 15, against nozzle 10. Concurrently with the discharge of the stream, or after its establishment, a command signal is applied to motor 28 from control station 33 via signal path 35 to energize the motor for rotation of shaft 25, and hence wheel 24, in a forward or counterclockwise sense (as shown in FlG. 2). As wheel 24 rotates, the sleeve is fed out over the stream and is carried along and supported by the moving boundary layer of air immediately adjacent the periphery of the stream. This tough, yet light and flexible, encompassing sheath or shroud is quite effective to protect the stream from severe weather conditions, particularly against tearing of the stream by strong and/or gusty winds, or from contamination by sea spray or other foreign matter.

Prior to complete replenishment of the liquid stores of the receiving station and before the jet stream 12 is cut off, the extended sleeve is retracted (i.e. recovered or collapsed) to an accordion-like state for storage until the next fluid transfer operation, by appropriate command signal from control station 33 to drive motor 28 in a reverse sense (clockwise, as shown in FIG. 2). Gf course, when the desired length of sleeve has been fed out at the start of the transfer operation, and when the sleeve has been recovered at the conclusion of the transfer operation, the motor is deenergized.

In essence, the fluid transfer system is provided with an extensible-collapsible sheath as a protective covering for the jet stream.

i claim:

1. A method of transferring fluid from a supply station to one or more receiving stations separated from the supply station, including the steps of discharging said fluid in the form of a high-velocity, well-defined said stream from s id 5 l S no 2. The method 3f clziii n i wli erei n at least one of said supply station and said receiving station is located aboard a seagoing vessel.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein said fluid is liquid fuel.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein said protective sheath is a flexible, collapsible, thin-walled tube.

5. The method of claim 4 further including the step of longitudinally collapsing said sheath for return thereof to said supply station prior to terminating said stream.

6. In a system for transferring fluid from a supply station to a receiving station separated from said supply station, the combination comprising at said supply station, a nozzle for discharging said fluid in the form of a high-velocity, well-defined stream toward said receiving station, a thin-walled, flexible sleeve normally maintained in a longitudinally collapsed condition coaxial with said nozzle rearward of the point of discharge of said stream therefrom, means securing said sleeve at the end thereof more remote from said point of discharge, and means for longitudinally extending said sleeve as a protective sheath for said stream;

wherein said means for extending also comprises means for longitudinally collapsing said sleeve to return it to said normal condition upon termination of the discharge of said stream from said nozzle;

and wherein said means for extending and for collapsing include reversibly rotatable means frictionally engaging said sleeve.

7. A method of delivering fluid from a source of such fluid to a receptacle therefor, through normally open space separating said source from said receptacle, comprising issuing a jet of said fluid from said source toward said receptacle, and

releasing a sleeve about said jet from said source to be carried by a moving boundary layer immediately adjacent said jet, said sleeve having a thin wall relative to the average diameter of said jet.

8. The method of claim 7, further including retracting said sleeve back to said source when the issuance of said fluid jet is to be concluded.

9. Apparatus for delivering fluid from a source of such fluid to a receptacle therefor, through normally open space between the source and the receptacle, said apparatus comprising means for issuing a jet of said fluid from said source toward said receptacle,

a sleeve for encompassing said fluid jet, and

means, associated with said issuing means, for selectively extending and retracting said sleeve relative to said fluid jet;

wherein the interior of said sleeve is configured to permit said sleeve to be carried by a moving boundary layer immediately surrounding said jet.

=i =l a 

1. A method of transferring fluid from a supply station to one or more receiving stations separated from the supply station, including the steps of discharging said fluid in the form of a high-velocity, well-defined stream toward each said receiving station from said supply station through the open space therebetween, and simultaneously extending a protective sheath about said stream from said supply station.
 2. The method of claim 1 wherein at least one of said supply station and said receiving station is located aboard a seagoing vessel.
 3. The method of claim 2 wherein said fluid is liquid fuel.
 4. The method of claim 1 wherein said protective sheath is a flexible, collapsible, thin-walled tube.
 5. The method of claim 4 further including the step of longitudinally collapsing said sheath for return thereof to said supply station prior to terminating said stream.
 6. In a system for transferring fluid from a supply station to a receiving station separated from said supply station, the combination comprising at said supply station, a nozzle for discharging said fluid in the form of a high-velocity, well-defined stream toward said receiving station, a thin-walled, flexible sleeve normally maintained in a longitudinally collapsed condition coaxial with said nozzle rearwArd of the point of discharge of said stream therefrom, means securing said sleeve at the end thereof more remote from said point of discharge, and means for longitudinally extending said sleeve as a protective sheath for said stream; wherein said means for extending also comprises means for longitudinally collapsing said sleeve to return it to said normal condition upon termination of the discharge of said stream from said nozzle; and wherein said means for extending and for collapsing include reversibly rotatable means frictionally engaging said sleeve.
 7. A method of delivering fluid from a source of such fluid to a receptacle therefor, through normally open space separating said source from said receptacle, comprising issuing a jet of said fluid from said source toward said receptacle, and releasing a sleeve about said jet from said source to be carried by a moving boundary layer immediately adjacent said jet, said sleeve having a thin wall relative to the average diameter of said jet.
 8. The method of claim 7, further including retracting said sleeve back to said source when the issuance of said fluid jet is to be concluded.
 9. Apparatus for delivering fluid from a source of such fluid to a receptacle therefor, through normally open space between the source and the receptacle, said apparatus comprising means for issuing a jet of said fluid from said source toward said receptacle, a sleeve for encompassing said fluid jet, and means, associated with said issuing means, for selectively extending and retracting said sleeve relative to said fluid jet; wherein the interior of said sleeve is configured to permit said sleeve to be carried by a moving boundary layer immediately surrounding said jet. 